Wild Spirit
by Noppoh
Summary: ONE-SHOT - AU - Cowboy Tonks finds herself in unknown territory. What will happen when she meets an unconventional Indian? NT/CW


**AN: This story is in response to an AU prompt on the 'The Fairest of the Rare' facebook page. The prompt simply stated 'Wild Wild West', pairing was free to choose, as long as it was a rare one.**

 **AN: The theme is Wild Wild West, as you could read in the first AN, and so the first thing that comes to mind is (obviously) Cowboys and Indians. This One-Shot is written without doing any research and probably reflects a very cliché version of the trope. I would like to state that I am well aware of the diversity of Native Indian cultures and that I have the utmost respect for them.**

 **Disclaimer: Everything expect the plotline belongs to J.K. Rowling.**

Tonks let out a sigh. Lost. Again. She looked around, searching the mountains, canyons and vast plain for landmarks. To no avail. She nudged her horse up the hill and towards the cliff. _At least the view is nice,_ she thought, admiring the herd of horses down on the grassy plain, dipping her wide-brimmed hat lower to shield her eyes.

Suddenly, her instincts told her to duck. She let herself drop from her horse, lifting a shield charm to surround her like a bubble. The strange, unfocused magic used by the Indians crackled against it. She swiftly turned on her feet to see a red-haired Indian standing not far from her.

Tonks blinked in surprise. All the indians from the region had black hair, she had never seen one with red hair before. They stared at each other and she lowered her wand, seeing that he didn't move to attack her again.

He had a sturdy build, a bit on the short side but with wide shoulders and a broad chest. His hair was braided down his back, feathers and small trinkets woven in it. There were a couple of scars visible on his upper arms and chest. His legs looked equally strong and his feet were clad in soft leather boots.

His eyes flicked from her to her horse, Maddy, and back. "Horse is injured."

Concerned, Tonks turned to her faithful companion, completely forgetting about the danger the Indian presented at her back. Her hands flitted along the animal's flank and legs, looking for wounds. She jumped in surprise as the man appeared next to her, not having heard him move at all. He contemplated her for a bit before gently placing his hands on her horse's rump and murmuring in his native language.

Tonks watched as he lifted Maddy's hind leg and located a small stone that was wedged between the horse's hoof and the horse shoe. The Indian clucked his tongue and gently set the horse's leg back down. He moved past her and grabbed the reins.

"Come."

Without much thought, she followed him down the hill towards the herd. The horses whinnied softly at their approach. He greeted them with a peculiar call of his own. Near the side of the herd was a little tent she hadn't spotted from up the cliff.

"Lose saddle," the Indian said before disappearing into the small structure.

Shrugging, Tonks did as he said. If he wanted to kill her, he would have done so already. In addition, she also removed the bit from Maddy's mouth.

When the man reappeared, he nodded in approval. Once more murmuring in his native language, he caressed Maddy's neck, along her flanks and down her leg. With a thin knife, he worried at the stone until it dislodged. The horse shook its head in relief.

"Thank you," Tonks said. "May I ask your name?"

The Indian looked at her, speculation in his eyes.

"Wild Spirit," he answered. "You pale-faces know me as Charlie."

"Charlie," she repeated.

Again, there was silence as both appraised each other.

"You can go now," he finally said.

Tonks felt her face go bright red. "Uhm, could you, uhm, could you perhaps point me towards Charlesville?"

He stayed silent, merely raising an eyebrow. Tonks let out an embarrassed sigh.

"I got lost."

"You can't navigate the land?"

"Yeah, yeah," she rolled her eyes, "I'm hopeless, I know."

She heard it all before, she didn't feel like having him rub it in. When he remained silent, she huffed in annoyance and reached for her saddle.

"Never mind, I'll find my way."

"It's that way." Charlie pointed out across the open plain. "But the tribes are meeting there as well. You don't go there."

She blinked at him. It was unheard of for an Indian to protect a Cowboy.

"You stay two days until tribes move on. We will move in the right direction."

"Stay?" Tonks repeated.

Charlie ignored her, carefully studying her horse's bridle and removing it. He grabbed a wide band of leather and, wrapping it around her horse's head, guided it towards the herd. The calm, soft tones with which he spoke mesmerized her. Tonks sat down on the ground to watch him interact with his horses. She guessed she was staying.

Some time later, he came to sit beside her. Not much was said between them. In the evening, they shared food and went to sleep on either side of the fire. With her head resting on her saddle, Tonks contemplated the strange situation.

If the local stories were to be believed, this Indian should have tried to kill her as soon as he could. Instead, he offered her refuge of sorts and shared his food with her. Mentally, she shrugged. Stranger things had happened.

The next morning, after a breakfast of hard bread and dried fruits, Charlie started packing up his tent.

"Get your horse ready."

Tonks whistled and was relieved to see Maddy trod towards her. She realised it would have been immensely humiliating had she not responded. Once his tent was packed, he gave another peculiar call. It had a certain bird-like quality and was oddly beautiful.

Looking up, Tonks saw a white and brown horse break free from the herd and come their way. The animal had a faded, black handprint on its shoulder. Man and horse greeted each other with soft tones and gentle touches. Charlie swung his packs over the horse's back and mounted it with one, fluent jump.

"We move."

Tonks couldn't help but feel admiration for the way Charlie and his horse moved together. They made it look so natural, as if they both became one. Still marvelling, she mounted Maddy and followed. Charlie circled the herd, rounding them up with calls and movement, before guiding them further down the plain. She felt the urge to help him, but realised she would only get in the way. Following silently, she watched man and animal work together, doing nothing more than urge the occasional strangler to rejoin the group.

By midday, they reached a stream. Charlie rode towards her. "Here we stop."

He moved a bit more upstream and dismounted. After grabbing his bags and dropping them on the ground, he grabbed some fabric and rubbed down his horse. Tonks quickly followed his example. When he was satisfied, he caressed the horse's forehead, said something to it, rested his own forehead against the animal's, and set it free.

"What did you say?" Tonks asked.

He looked at her. "I thanked her for her help."

Tonks didn't know what to make of that. It was such a strange concept. After some deliberation, she figured she might as well do the same. Maddy had just carried her a long way after all. She removed the bridle and stroked her companion's neck.

"Thank you. Now off you go, go make some friends."

She watched her horse trod off to graze, completely missing Charlie's surprised look. Once more she felt obsolete, as he raised his tent with practiced ease. Instead of sitting idle, she decided to grease her saddle.

"You stay here, watch the herd."

Before she could respond, Charlie took off, upstream and into the rocky outcrops. Tonks stared after him and shrugged. He was obviously not one of many words. She liked that. So many of the men she met in the villages simply never shut up, either trying to impress her, or only one glass away from a drunken stupor.

As he requested, she watched the herd, wondering where he'd run off to. Her question was answered when he returned about two hours later with a rabbit dangling over his shoulder.

When he dropped it on the ground and started skinning it, Tonks set out to gather firewood. Not long after, a fire was crackling away, grease from the rabbit making the flames sizzle.

"Tell me a story," she asked Charlie after they finished the meat and were lying next to the dying fire, counting the stars in the sky.

He turned his head to look at her. "A story?"

"Yes. If you don't mind, of course. Tell me one of your legends."

She watched as he gathered his thoughts. In a soft, even tone, he started telling a tale about a fox wanting to learn the secrets of fire. It was so different from the stories she heard at home that she couldn't help but listen avidly.

As his voice died out over the plain, Tonks let out a content sigh. This was it. This was the life she had come looking for when she decided to move to America.

"Why is your hair red?" she blurted.

He made an indistinct noise. "It is a trait of my family. Our people say we are descendant of the firefoxes."

"You have a family?"

"I have six brothers and a sister."

"Where are they?"

"With the tribe." There was a moment of silence. "Your family?"

"Back in England. They're a crazy bunch."

"Across the Great Water?"

"Yes."

With that, their conversation ended. With the sound of the herd in the background, together with the wind rustling through the grass and the water tinkling in the stream, Tonks easily drifted off to sleep.

When she woke the next morning, she opened her eyes to see Charlie hovering above her. In reflex, she balled her fist and swung at him. He blocked her by wrapping his hand around hers. In the short time he held it, she noticed it was warm and callused.

"Up!" he commanded.

"We're moving?" Tonks asked, struggling and stumbling to get up.

"Not yet." He let out one of his peculiar calls and an older looking mare trotted towards them.

"You have a different call for each of them?"

"Only those that are trained." He guided the horse towards her. "Mount."

Tonks looked from him, to the horse, and back. "Excuse me?"

"Horse doesn't need saddle, doesn't need headgear. You mount."

"Are you- Are you sure?"

Charlie simply looked at her, waiting.

"Uhm. Ok."

She took hold of the horse's mane, swung her leg and jumped up. Not used to mounting like thi0,s she struggled a bit while trying. To her relief, Charlie remained stone-faced. The horse shifted its weight but was quickly calmed by his murmuring.

He stepped back and looked up at her. "Now you ride, no kicking the horse."

"What?!"

"Lean forward, then you ride."

Tentatively, she leaned forward, wrapping her hands tighter around the horse's mane when it immediately responded and started walking. She readjusted her seating, pressing her legs against the side of the horse and trying to get used to the lack of a saddle. When she accidentally slid sideways, the horse moved with her, making a turn.

It took her some time, and some blunt directions from Charlie, but finally Tonks managed to fully control her horse. She looked over her shoulder when Charlie called his own companion, only to see him running towards her. The same white and brown animal from before broke free from the herd and started galloping towards them. When it passed by Charlie, he grabbed its mane and jumped on its back. Tonks stared at him in awe.

Charlie let out a joyful cry. Bending low over his horse's neck, he shot past her at a breakneck speed. Her own horse followed suit, forcing Tonks to hold on for dear life. Soon, however, she was laughing loudly, feeling carefree as they rushed across the plain. Charlie's face was alight with jubilance. She had never seen a man so full of life, so beautiful.

When they returned to camp, they allowed their horses to rest before guiding the herd to the next location. Once more on a saddle, Tonks realised how it disrupted the connection between man and horse. She fully understood now that the practice so many of her countrymen found barbaric, wasn't barbaric at all.

The rest of their day was quiet. When Tonks gazed at the stars in the evening, she realised that this should be her last night. 'Stay two days' he had said, which meant she would have to leave in the morning. The thought saddened her. She did not want to leave. She was enjoying the quiet, peaceful time with the herd. The silence and the ease of it all suited her. Besides, Charlie intrigued her. She wanted to get to know him better, see more of the man she saw that morning. Closing her eyes, she let out a sigh. She would deal with it the next day.

When dawn broke, Tonks stayed where she was and Charlie never mentioned her leaving. One day turned into two, then three, and quickly into weeks. Charlie started training Maddy to be ridden without a saddle. He taught Tonks how to properly navigate the land and how to hunt for small game. He taught her how to care for the horses and entrusted her with them.

Little by little, Tonks told him about her background. She told him about her crazy, prejudiced family and her need to escape them. She told him about her decision to leave it all behind and come to America, in search of an easier life. In return, Charlie told her the stories of his people and their customs. He told her about his own, extensive family, and about his childhood.

The weeks easily turned into months and even years. They both knew their relationship was unconventional, but neither cared. Living in the present, the future had little meaning for them. They had each other, and that was all that mattered.


End file.
